JOSEPH #55 | JOSEPH IN EGYPT #37 | LAST WORDS OF JACOB #26

Pastor Christopher Choo
Lesson 3651

JOSEPH #55

JOSEPH IN EGYPT #37
LAST WORDS OF JACOB #26

11. JOSEPH #2

Very few readers question why Joseph's life occupies such a lengthy discourse in the Book of Genesis.

Moses (the author of Genesis) gives Joseph more time in Genesis than he does any other character.

Why is it so prominent in Genesis?

God’s sovereignty is a major theme in Genesis 37–50, and Joseph himself intends for us to interpret his life in light of God’s providence (cf. Gen. 45:1–9).

Divine sovereignty and human responsibility intersect, focusing almost exclusively on Genesis 50:20: “What you meant for evil God meant for good.”

God wants us to see how He puts Himself in impossible situations and yet finds a way to keep His covenant promises to His chosen people.

Joseph highlights how God’s providence secures God’s promises.

Genesis records a series of reoccurring threats that endanger the survival and purity of the covenant line. 

In chapters 37–50, all the threats converge, creating an impossibly dire situation for Jacob and his children:

1. Family division and violence, reminiscent of Cain and Abel, threaten the seed’s survival. (Gen. 37; cf. Gen. 4)

2. Unrighteousness and intermarriage with foreign nations threaten the seed’s purity. (Gen. 38; cf. Gen. 12:10–20)

3. Global famine endangers the entire covenant line. (Gen. 42:1–2; cf. Gen. 3:17–19; 12:10; 26:1)

But God reverses curses and Joseph is God's instrument in preserving God's covenant with Abraham.

Thus God used Joseph to resolve each of these recurring problems in Abraham’s family:

1. Instead of exacting revenge, Joseph reconciles with his brothers and restores family unity by extending forgiveness. (Gen. 45:1–15)

2. Joseph settles his family in Goshen, shielding them from foreign cultural influence. Safeguarded by the Egyptians’ prejudices (Gen. 46:33–34), Israel develops as a nation without dangers posed by intermarriage with foreign peoples.

3. Joseph preserves his family (and the world) amid severe famine through wisdom and administrative genius. (Gen. 41:25–35; 47:13–26

What is the lesson for us today?

Through Joseph, God is reversing the curse—unraveling violence through forgiveness, unrighteousness through righteousness, and hunger through wisdom.

Yet some of you will ask why would Joseph marry an Egyptian woman then? Was he not breaking God's covenant?

N.B. The answer to the last question will be given in tomorrow's devotion.